Haku's Return
by BurningScarlet
Summary: It's been 10 years since Chihiro's encounter with the spirit world. Chihiro has finally entered university and life is so normal that everything that happened seemed like a dream. But just as she thought she would never see the spirit world again, a devilishly handsome man with long black hair transfers to her university. Who is this man and why does he seem so familiar?
1. Chapter 1

**Hey, thanks for coming to read my first every Spirited Away fanfic! *laugh* I honestly have no experience with these things, and I'm pretty sure that even this one chapter is the farthest I've ever gotten. **

**First of all, a little disclaimer: If you're the type who's read an endless stream of fanfics concerning Chihiro and Haku all grown up and ending up together (with all that clichés) and you've grown sick of it; then steer clear of this fanfic. I know it's probably the most overused plot in all Spirited Away fanfics but I wanted to take a stab at it myself - even before reading fanfics I've always loved visualizing how it would be like to have Chihiro and Haku reunited as adults. True love lasts forever after all. :)**

**Also, this is one of my first fanfics so don't hesitate to be absolutely ruthless with the reviews! *laugh* I'm always striving to keep my stories as good as possible so any input provided will help me beef up whatever meager skills I have to hopefully create something which is actually decent.**

**When writing this piece I've always wondered just how Chihiro and Haku would reunite. Being a river deity/god Haku is pretty much bound to the spirit world; he obviously needed to take some drastic measures to get into the human world. And Chihiro, after 10 years, is pretty much starting to wonder herself whether it was all a dream; life is so normal it's starting to feel like all those magical moments never happened at all.**

**So, thank you for reading, and I hope you enjoy. :)**

Haku's Return

"You have to promise not to look back. Not until you've passed through the tunnel," he said, holding my hand with a reassuring grasp.

"What about you? What'll you do?" I asked. What if this was the last time I'd see him? I couldn't take that. Not now. Not after everything we've been through together.

"Don't worry. I'll go back and have a talk with Yubaba. I'll tell her I'm going to quit being her apprentice. I'm fine, I got my name back," he said confidently. He said it with such conviction that even I felt a little relieved.

"Will we meet again sometime?"

"Sure we will."

"Promise?" I asked, looking expectantly at his jade-green eyes.

"Promise," he said, his eyes sparkling with absolute certainty. "Now go. And don't look back."

And I ran. I ran as fast as I could across the lush green hills. As fast as I dared along the rocks of the dry stream. And I didn't look back. And that was the last I saw of him.

* * *

_Where are you, Haku?_

… _Where did you go?_

"Chihiro?"

_Haku? Is that you?_

"Chihiro!"

_Haku, I have so much to tell you… So many things I'd wish I'd said before I left-_

"CHIHIRO!"

Chihiro awoke with a start. The sound of a train rumbled outside her window. It was that dream again. Her roommate, Keiko, was hopping on one foot, hurriedly putting her clothes on.

"Chihiro, wake up! We're gonna be late for class again if you don't get moving- Oh gosh, it's already 9! Mr. Miura is gonna kill us if we're late for the lecture again…"

Chihiro groaned. She definitely was not in the mood for a Miura calculus lecture today. The last time she was late he'd made her answer all the questions she'd missed in front of the class on her table to remind her that 'knowledge waits for no man'. Everyone started calling her the "Miura victim" for a week after that.

"I don't wanna go to class today, Keiko," she whined, pulling a pillow over her head.

Keiko, who was pulling on her heels, rolled her eyes at Chihiro as she grasped the handle of the door.

"Oh, suit yourself, but I'm holding you responsible if Mr. Miura asks me why you didn't make it to class today. The things I do for a friend…" she muttered as she slammed the door behind her.

Chihiro could hear the pitter patter of footsteps running down the stairs to the apartment complex. Another train cruised by, drowning out the sound with a loud blow from its horn. Chihiro pulled the duvet over herself and sulked. She has definitely seen better starts to her day.

* * *

_A quaint office with the glow of firelight was occupied. An old woman with a head far too large for her body was slowly filling out a pile of paperwork on her desk. On the floor to the left of her desk, three strange disembodied green heads pranced around each other on the rug with glee. Standing in front of them was a young boy, no older than 13 in a traditional Japanese robe, with shoulder-length hair and jade eyes that sparkled in the glow of the fire._

"… _Are you sure about this?"_

_The heads were prancing harder now, oblivious to the tense atmosphere in the room._

"…_Yes."_

_The fireplace was crackling, with embers sparking out of the wooden fennel, dangerously dispersing a few inches in front of the Arabian rug on the floor._

"_You do realise that even if I grant your request, you'll lose everything? How are you even supposed to find her, when you won't have the means anymore?"_

_Her pen, which was marking paperwork at an incredible speed just seconds ago, stopped as she waited for his answer. Her massive eyes slowly rose to look him in the eye._

"…_It's better than never seeing her again."_

_Widening her eyes in surprise, the witch began to laugh in amusement. Stunned by the sudden change in the attitude, the three heads were taken aback, rolling behind the sofa next to the fireplace._

"_I like your spirit, boy! True love, huh? I guess the age old stories were true!" she guffawed, laughing continuously like he'd just given her the punch line to a great joke._

_Unaffected by her glee, the boy stood there resolutely, waiting for the answer he seeked. After a while, the laughter faded as the witch wiped the tears from her eyes._

"… _Fine. I'll grant your request. As a special gesture of goodwill, I'll even send you to the other side myself," she said, resuming her business-like tone. "But… I'll expect payment in full. What you ask for is no simple task. In fact, it's UNHEARD of! In all my centuries here at the bathhouse, no deity has ever been foolish enough to ask me of such a thing. So I'll ask you one last time. Are you certain this is what you want?"_

_Looking her straight in the eye, the boy nodded, slowly turning to leave. _

"_Don't go back on your word, __**Yubaba."**_

* * *

Chihiro awoke again, gasping as if awoken from a nightmare.

_The same dream again._

For 10 straight years, she'd always have the strangest dreams. For some reason, they were always blurry, like there was some sort of wall clouding her vision – trying to stop her from seeing her dreams with any clarity at all. At first the mysteries of the dreams and their contents tormented Chihiro with their tantalizing secrets. What exactly did they mean? But after 10 long years of having the same cloudy dreams over and over again the mystique had run its course, giving way to annoyance.

'_Why couldn't she have normal dreams for once?' she wondered. 'Ten years of the same, broken tape running on replay,' she thought bitterly. It wouldn't have been so bad if the dreams made sense._

Chihiro looked at her clock. Oh, wow. It was 2 pm. She'd slept for 5 hours!

Chihiro jumped out of bed and hurriedly began to undress. It was almost time for afternoon classes, and she figured she had already missed enough classes for one day.

Besides, there was always time to think about dreams later.

*chapter 1 end*

* * *

**And that's the end of chapter 1! I've written a lot more than this but I thought that this would make a good cut off for the ending. So, let me know what you think, and I hope you enjoying reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Thanks for all the feedback guys! It's been a great help. Here's the second chapter; enjoy!**

****An Unexpected Meeting

Chihiro was in a pretty bad mood.

After what seemed like an uneventful week, Mr Miura had tracked down Chihiro personally to berate her in front of all her peers in the library.

"Ms. Ogino, in all my years of teaching, nothing has made me question my vocation more than you and your antics in my lectures."

_Jeez, thanks Mr Miura. I absolutely love the joy you've brought to my life too._

Now Chihiro was stuck in the library, dealing with the workload Mr Miura had seen fit to give her, adamant that she not miss his important lectures. The silence in the library was punctuated every few seconds though by the giggling and whispering of amused bystanders sitting among the tables next to the books, pointing and laughing at the scene that had occurred earlier. Chihiro groaned as she pulled the book over her head. Could this day get any worse?

She sighed, finally resigning herself to the study which she'd neglected for so long. A small pile of remedial books for her failing calculus lessons were stacked awkwardly on the table in front of her. The pile of work she had to do made her feel nauseous. And the thought of the smug look on Miura's face as he slammed the books on the table was definitely not helping her keep her breakfast down.

Keiko joined her on the opposite side of the table soon after, looking amused at the books Chihiro had buried herself in.

"You know Chi-chan, I'm pretty sure building a little fort out of books isn't going to help you complete your remedial homework."

"I wish these books were a cave or a hole I could crawl into and hide for the rest of eternity in," Chihiro groaned. "This is insane. How does Mr Miura expect me to finish all this by today?"

"It's your own fault you know. You keep skipping class."

"That's because Mr Miura spends more time lecturing me than he actually does teaching me!"

Keiko grasped her head in exasperation. "You fall asleep during every one of his classes!" Pulling a book out from under her, Keiko thrust the open book into Chihiro's arms. "There, get started with this one, chop chop! There's this shop I want to head to later, and if you can't finish by the afternoon I'm eating taiyaki at the corner stand without you."

Chihiro groaned again. The taiyaki at the corner stand was her favourite snack.

"Ok, fine… But if I don't make it in time will you save me a slice?"

"No promises."

"…You suck."

Keiko grinned and began flipping through the pages of Chihiro's book.

"That's what best friends are for. Now… Chop chop. Taiyaki offer won't last forever."

* * *

It was dusk. The sun was setting over the horizon, the beams of light shining through the tall windows of the library and refracting everywhere, making the books glow with an otherworldly light. Alone in the corner of the library, Chihiro lay asleep, using her pile of books as a head rest.

"_Remember Chihiro, don't look back, not until you've passed the tunnel. If you do, you'll never be able to return again."_

_But what if I've changed my mind? What if I never want to go back?_

"_You don't have much time. When the sun sets you'll be trapped here forever. You have to leave now."_

_Haku…_

"_Don't worry; I'll see you on the other side."_

_But what if I never see you again?_

"_I promise I'll see you again."_

_That's a lie! I've already waited for 10 years!_

"_I promise. I'll see you again."_

_Haku?_

"_I promise…"_

_HAKU!_

Chihiro awoke with a gasp. A boy who was sitting beside her jumped back in shock, obviously taken aback.

"WOAH!" he exclaimed.

Chihiro stood up quickly, scanning around the room for signs of Haku, signs that it wasn't just a dream. No one except the boy stood there, eyes wide open with surprise. Disappointed, Chihiro sank back into her seat; suddenly losing the rush of energy she had from thinking she'd see Haku again.

"Hey… Chihiro… Are you okay?"

It was hard to hold back the tears. Chihiro felt like the feelings she'd kept dormant could burst forth at any moment. She wiped a tear from her eye.

"Yeah, I'm…. I'm okay.

Unconvinced, the boy took a seat beside her, his face full of concern.

"Are you sure? You were talking in your sleep. Saying 'Haku' something over and over."

Chihiro blushed despite herself. He saw that? Out of all the times to reminisce about Haku, she had to do it in a public place? Chihiro hid her face under her books again.

"I-It's nothing. I was just… Stressed out from all the work, that's all."

"It sure didn't sound like work."

"I was having a rough day, okay Daiki?" Chihiro said indignantly. Daiki was one of her friends who usually sat next to her in communications class. He was tall, lanky boy who liked dressing up in oversized shirts and jumpers which unintentionally made him look younger than he really was. Usually she'd be fine with him but right now she just wanted to be alone.

Daiki put up both his hands in surrender.

"Alright, alright, I believe you."

"Thanks," she sighed. "Sorry Daiki but could you leave me alone for a bit?"

"No can do. Keiko was worried, so she asked me to check up on you."

Chihiro groaned. She'd fallen asleep halfway through her homework and now the sun had set. So much for the delicious taste of taiyaki…

"I haven't finished my homework yet. Where is Keiko anyway?"

"She went back to the residence rooms early. Said something about feeling tired."

"Didn't she go shopping?" Chihiro exclaimed in surprise.

"She told me not to tell you, but she didn't feel like going by herself."

Keiko actually declined shopping for her? Chihiro felt a little touched.

"Oh, ok. Thanks for letting me know that. What about you, weren't you supposed to be at practice today?"

"Skipped it," grinned Daiki. "The coach was ill today so everyone's playing hooky while the substitute teacher is teaching. It's not like we get any practice done without the coach anyway…"

"But what are you doing here then?" asked Chihiro.

Daiki's cheeks reddened a little as she asked this. "Umm, well, I was just hanging around, you know? And I walk in and see you sleeping all alone so I… umm… Just decided to stick around?" said Daiki, clearly flustered.

"Oh, I see."

Her thoughts still on Haku, Chihiro heaved a small sigh. Why did even her daydreams have to torment her as well? It's not like the dreams she had at night were any better…

Daiki stared at Chihiro, who was clearly lost in thought.

"So, uh, Chi-chan!"

Chihiro, who was still dreaming, snapped back to reality and looked taken aback at Daiki's sudden change in tone.

"Uh, yeah?"

"Would you like to… Umm… You know… If you're not doing anything," he muttered.

Chihiro tilted her head quizzically.

"If I'm not doing anything…?"

"Uhh, I know you wanted to have Taiyaki today… So… Ummm. I was wondering…."

"Yes…?"

Daiki gulped.

"Would you like to… go get some Taiyaki…? The store isn't closed yet…"

Daiki looked at her expectantly. Chihiro considered what he said for a moment.

_Taiyaki, eh?_

She sighed. Well, she clearly wasn't going to be able to finish all the work tonight.

"Ok then Daiki. Let's go."

* * *

The market district outside the university was brimming with people.

It was already dark, but the festive lights coming from the lanterns hanging from the stalls and the light from the store windows lit up the place like it was the middle of the day. Groups of drunken students and business people who lived in the general area were walking in throngs, singing carols at the top of their voices or falling over while laughing their hearts out. Chihiro liked the market place. It was always so full of life, just like the spirit world. It felt comfortable.

Chihiro and Daiki briskly walked through the market place, carefully side stepping all the commotion on the street. Traditional stalls which sold their merchandise all year round were selling their wares along the side of the road.

"Fresh Takoyaki! Get your fresh Takoyaki right here!"

"Chocolate bananas for sale! Get them while they're fresh!"

"You there, the lovely couple! Come sample my wares!"

Daiki and Chihiro continued on, walking past the bridge on the river bank and through the market crossroads, finally slowing their pace at the northern end of the market, where a lone stall sat, the smell of freshly baked taiyaki wafting through the air. A middle aged man with a crew cut was expertly handling the filling laden treats.

Chihiro's mouth began to water. She could smell the red bean filling from over here. Daiki grinned at the look on Chihiro's face.

"Come on. We better finish it quick or we're gonna get locked out of the dorms."

"Yeah yeah," she said, wiping the drool from her lips with her sleeves. "Come on, let's eat!"

Daiki shrugged with amusement. "Ok, ok. Wait here. I'll go buy some. My treat today, alright?"

"That's so unlike you," she teased. "Does this mean you're treating me to taiyaki every day?"

Daiki blushed. "What? What are you saying? It's just this once. This one time! Okay?"

Chihiro pouted. "Tsk. Fine. Still my lucky day," she said, grinning.

Daiki turned away, embarrassed. "A-anyways! I'll just be a sec, so wait here alright?"

Daiki quickly rushed off towards the direction of the stand. _Why is he in such a hurry? Chihiro wondered. _

Chihiro looked around. The market was buzzing with activity as usual. She came here so often she knew what everything looked like by memory. The old lady and her produce were set-up there; the candy store and its famous cotton candy were located here; and the old fisherman was staring at the river from the bridge.

Wait. That wasn't the old fisherman.

Chihiro turned back to get another look at the man. The man looked young, like he was in his 20's, about the same age as Chihiro. But for some reason he looked much older than she was. He was wearing a black colored collar shirt which fit the contours of his body perfectly, making him blend into the night sky like a ghost. A white scarf was wrapped around his neck. His hands were holding his dark hair back, his long ponytail lashing out like a whip as the breeze attacked it at full force. And his eyes were a sparkling green, the light reflecting off his irises like the sheen of royal jade as he stared into the empty abyss of the endless river.

Chihiro was captivated. She had never seen such a handsome man before.

His eyes were like an endless void, the deep emerald green sucking every fibre of Chihiro's being in, giving her a sense of familiarity and warmth she knows she's felt before…

Chihiro gasped.

"Haku?"

* * *

**And so ends chapter 2! Let me know what you think. :) (I'll probably edit Haku's description later; I had to rush the last bit to get it uploaded before I went to bed tonight)**


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